Fink: Crypto & Gold Are ‘Assets of Fear’ Amid Debt Crisis

At the Future Investment Initiative conference in Riyadh, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink made a striking declaration that has reverberated across global financial markets. “Owning crypto assets or gold are assets of fear,” Fink stated, according to Bloomberg reports. “You own these assets because you’re frightened of the debasement of your assets. You’re worried about your financial security. You’re worried about your physical security.” This characterization marks a significant evolution in Fink’s perspective, who in 2017 dismissed cryptocurrencies as “the domain of money launderers and thieves” but now describes himself as a “major believer” who sees Bitcoin as “an instrument you invest in when you’re more frightened.”

The transformation in Fink’s stance carries substantial weight given BlackRock’s position as the world’s largest asset manager with $12.5 trillion under management. The firm now operates the iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), the largest crypto ETF with $93.9 billion in assets, cementing institutional acceptance of digital assets. Fink’s recent comments to CBS reinforce this shift, noting that crypto has “a role in the same way there is a role for gold, that is, it’s an alternative.” This endorsement from one of finance’s most influential figures signals a fundamental reassessment of cryptocurrency’s place in global portfolios.

The driving force behind this ‘fear trade’ is rooted in alarming fiscal projections from the International Monetary Fund. According to IMF forecasts, the United States’ general government gross debt will surge by more than 20 percentage points to reach 143.4% of GDP by 2030, surpassing pandemic-era records. This projection means the U.S. debt burden will exceed levels in both Italy and Greece for the first time this century, a startling development given those nations’ historical debt crises.

Compounding these concerns, the IMF estimates the U.S. budget deficit will remain above 7% of GDP annually until 2030, the highest among rich nations tracked by the fund. Fabian Dori, Chief Investment Officer at Sygnum Bank, explained to Decrypt that “the renewed focus on the so‑called ‘debasement trade’—where investors move away from fiat currencies into hard assets—is rooted in a clear trend: purchasing power is weakening in light of both fiscal and monetary policy leeway, especially on the U.S. dollar side.” This environment creates fertile ground for alternative assets that can potentially preserve value amid currency debasement.

While institutional interest in cryptocurrencies grows, significant infrastructure challenges remain. Sygnum Bank’s Fabian Dori highlighted that Bitcoin’s 24/7 volatility demands new risk systems and round-the-clock liquidity management that traditional institutions aren’t yet equipped to handle, making adoption “a slow-moving process.” Despite these hurdles, Dori points to encouraging developments: U.S. public entities exploring strategic reserves, major managers positioning Bitcoin as collateral, and the CME’s move toward 24/7 crypto derivatives as signs that the “pieces of the puzzle are coming together.”

The evolution of cryptocurrency’s role in investment portfolios is becoming increasingly nuanced. Nic Puckrin, crypto analyst and co-founder of The Coin Bureau, told Decrypt that while Bitcoin originated as an “asset of fear” in response to the 2008 financial crisis, crypto has evolved into “a risk-on bet on the future of blockchain technology and an entirely new, borderless financial system.” Puckrin emphasized that Bitcoin and blue-chip tokens remain viewed as hedges against fiat devaluation, calling it “a secular trend, not just a short-term fear-based strategy.”

Market sentiment reflects this complex landscape. Bitcoin currently trades around $114,820, showing minimal movement in the past 24 hours according to CoinGecko data. Meanwhile, users of prediction market Myriad, launched by Decrypt’s parent company Dastan, expect that Bitcoin will not outperform gold this year, suggesting lingering uncertainty about crypto’s volatility despite growing institutional adoption. This cautious optimism underscores the balancing act investors face between fear-driven hedging and confidence in blockchain’s transformative potential.